Cigarette manufacture



March 29, 1966 A, g R 3,242,925

CIGARETTE MANUFA CTURE Filed Feb. 15, 1960 I/w'e/ZZZW Two/was 675R:-

United States Patent 3,242,925 CIGARETTE MANUFACTURE Thomas A. Sterne, RR. 3, Maple Drive, Oriilia, Ontario, Canada Filed Feb. 15, 1960, Ser. No. 8,595 3 Claims. (Cl. 131-10) The present invention relates to an improvement in cigarettes or cigars and more particularly to a cigarette or cigar including means offering the smoker, at his option,

a choice of taste by having the smoke filtered or unfiltered.

It is an object of the invention to provide a cigarette with a filter medium which may or may not be eiiective during the smoking of the cigarette.

Present day smokers usually have a preference for either plain end or filtered cigarettes and it is an object of the invention to give the smoker this preference in the same cigarette.

It is another object of the invention to provide a cigarette equipped with a filter which by the choice of the smoker will allow either filtered or unfiltered smoke to reach the mouth of the smoker.

A further object of the invention is to provide a cigarette having a filter medium through which is inserted one or more hollow collapsible tubes to form a free flow air passage and the air passage may be closed if so desired by the smoker.

The invention is hereafter more fully described by reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE I is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a cigarette and attached mouthpiece.

FIGURE II is a cross-sectional view of the cigarette mouthpiece showing one free-flow air tube inserted through the filter medium.

FIGURE III is a section similar to FIGURE II showing the free-flow air tube in closed position.

FIGURE IV is a modification of FIGURE 11 showing a plurality of free-flow air tubes inserted through the filter medium.

FIGURE V is a similar view of FIGURE IV showing the free-flow tubes in closed position.

The cigarette as shown in the attached drawings is of general construction including a cylindrical wrapper 1, and a mouthpiece 2. Tobacco 3 is contained in the forward end of the wrapper 1 and the mouthpiece 2 is contained in the rearward end of the wrapper. The mouthpiece 2 is provided with a filter medium 4 which may be of any well known type such as a cotton or cellulose mass, wadded or rolled. Extending through the filter medium 4 from the end of the tobacco mass to the rear end of the cigarette proper is a hollow longitudinal tube 5 constituting a conduit for smoke. The tube 5 may be made of any flexible material, such as paper. The inner surface of the tube is coated at 6 with any well known pressure sensitive self-sealing non-injurious adhesive. The tube 5 may be sealed or closed (as shown at 7 in FIG- URES III and V) by the application of a slight pressure against the outer wrapper 1 surrounding the mouthpiece by the smoker.

With reference to the structure as shown in FIGURES 1V and V, a plurality of tubular air passages 5 are inserted through the filter medium. The tubes are of the same type but smaller in diameter than the tube shown in FIGURE I. These tubes are coated on their inner surface with a self-sealing adhesive, and may be closed as previously described by the smoker pressing the mouthpiece between his thumb and finger.

From the structure just described it will be seen that this novel form of cigarette can satisfy both filtered and unfiltered cigarette smokers, and can be changed from an unfiltered type cigarette to a filtered type by the smoker merely by pressing the mouthpiece between the thumb and finger.

Thus, upon selecting a cigarette of the instant invention from a pack, the smoker may enjoy an unfiltered cigarette by allowing the air passage tube to remain open, or by preference may enjoy a filtered cigarette simply by squeezing the mouthpiece of the cigarette to close or seal the tubes.

It is to be noted that the tubes once closed or sealed will remain so due to the adhesive material coating the interior of the tube or tubes.

The above description is meant for the purpose of illustration only and should not be considered in a limiting sense since within the scope of the invention, a passage can be formed in the filter medium, and a pressure sensitive self-sealing adhesive applied to the wall of such passage.

I claim:

1. A cigarette including a supply of tobacco, a wrapper enclosing the tobacco supply, a filter medium within the wrapper at one end thereof, said filter medium having inner and outer ends, said filter medium having at least one passage extending longitudinally thereof from the outer end to the inner end to define a conduit through which unfiltered smoke may be drawn, and a pressuresensitive self-sealing adhesive on the wall of said passage operative to close the outer portion of said passage when pressure is applied to the end of the cigarette containing the filter medium so that smoke will be drawn through the filter medium.

2. A cigarette as claimed in claim 1, in which a hollow flexible tube defines said one passage.

3. A cigarette including a supply of tobacco, a wrapper enclosing the tobacco supply, a filter medium within the wrapper at one end thereof, said filter medium having inner and outer ends, said filter medium having a plurality of passages extending longitudinally thereof from the outer end to the inner end to define conduits through which unfiltered smoke may be drawn, and a pressure-sensitive self-sealing adhesive on the wall of each passage operative to close the outer portion of said passage when pressure is applied to the end of the cigarette containing the filter medium so that smoke will be drawn through the filter medium.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,695,617 11/1954 Warn-berg 131-10 2,827,903 3/1958 Niederman 13l10 2,890,703 6/1959 Grow a 131-1O SAMUEL KOREN, Primary Examiner.

ABRAHAM G. STONE, MELVIN D. REIN,

Examiners. 

1. A CIGARETTE INCLUDING A SUPPLY OF TOBACCO, A WRAPPER ENCLOSING THE TOBACCO SUPPLY, A FILTER MEDIUM WITHIN THE WRAPPER AT ONE END THEREOF, SAID FILTER MEDIUM HAVING INNER AND OUTER ENDS, SAID FILTER MEDIUM HAVING AT LEAST ONE PASSAGE EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY THEREOF FROM THE OUTER END TO THE INNER END TO DEFINE A CONDUIT THROUGH WHICH UNFILTERED SMOKE MAY BE DRAWN, AND A PRESSURESENSITIVE SELF-SEALING ADHESIVE ON THE WALL OF SAID PASSAGE OPERATIVE TO CLOSE THE OUTER PORTION OF SAID PASSAGE WHEN PRESSURE IS APPLIED TO THE END OF THE CIGARETTE CONTAINING THE FILTER MEDIUM SO THAT SMOKE WILL BE DRAWN THROUGH THE FILTER MEDIUM. 